Hertha Berlin beat Man Utd on penalties in Nike Academy Cup

Manchester United's hopes of winning the Nike Academy Cup 2015 ended in disappointment after defeat in an end-of-match penalty shoot-out to Hertha Berlin at St George’s Park on Sunday.

After a 3-3 draw in normal time, the lads from the German capital netted all three of their spot-kicks but only Andy Kellett was successful for the Reds.

Hertha had produced a excellent contest.

United’s 3-0 win over AS Monaco on Saturday, coupled with Hertha’s success against Nike Academy by a similar score, meant this match would decide the destination of the Europa League-lookalike trophy.

It was an early start for United and Hertha, with the game having a 10:00 BST kick-off, but on a damp and miserable Staffordshire morning, there was plenty of get up and go from both sides.

There was also a liberal sprinkling of goals to embellish an entertaining first half.

Ashley Fletcher gave United the lead, in the 16th minute, after Hertha’s keeper Nico Wiesner had blocked Matthew Willock’s shot.

But then Hertha hit back with two goals inside six minutes from Tashin Cakmak and Tim Gelleski.

It appeared that United had a battle on their hands, but within five minutes the Reds were back in front with a pair of goals from midfielder Liam Grimshaw.

The teams were certainly giving the small throng of onlookers plenty of goals to appreciate and, just before half-time, Farid Abderrahmane struck to send the teams in at the break level pegging on three goals apiece.

As regards goalscoring, the game went off the boil as the second half unfolded, but both teams were still making chances.

Skipper Tom Thorpe went close to getting on the end of speculative through ball and then Tashin Cakmak rattled one of United’s posts with a well-struck shot.

The rain, which had been falling down from the sky in torrents for most of the morning, finally started to ease as the game reached its closing stages.

By that time, the goal glut that had been an enjoyable feature of the first half had also dried up, with fewer and fewer genuine chances being produced.

So it was down to the dreaded penalty shoot-out and it was Hertha who proved more accurate from the spot.

Bayern Munich Stars Disappointed With Germany's Performance Against Georgia

​Germany beat Georgia 2-0 in Tbilisi in Sunday's Euro 2016 qualifier to stay in second place in Group D, but several Bayern Munich stars were disappointed with the overall level of performance from the reigning world champions.

"I think the key to our success was that we spent a lot of time in their half. We didn't always play the right pass and we lost the ball too often," Thomas Müller told DFB.de after the game.

Müller and Marco Reus scored Germany's goals in the first half of the clash, but the Bayern forward felt that more could have been done to kill the game off after the break.

"In the second half we could have made it easier for ourselves. I have mixed feelings because we started strongly but didn't manage to score after the break. However, it is nice to climb up the table," he said.

Bastian Schweinsteiger was pleased to be starting his first game since being named as Philipp Lahm's replacement as captain, but generally agreed with his club-mate's analysis.

"We kept a clean sheet, which was our aim, but it was difficult to find space against them," the 30-year-old explained.

"We made a few mistakes in their half, but we won the game anyway. We need to improve and will now concentrate on the games against Gibraltar and Scotland."

Bayern and Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer added, "We aimed to defend well and we managed that. It wasn't a virtuoso performance but we have improved since Wednesday (against Australia)."

Manager Joachim Löw was delighted with what were a vital three points, especially with Poland dropping points against the Republic of Ireland and Scotland winning.

"If you looked at the table ahead of the game you would have seen that we had to win today," he commented.

"I was happy with how we played in the first half. We combined well and looked dangerous. After the break we were a bit sloppy and made a few mistakes. Georgia stayed deep and made it difficult for us."

International friendly: Deutschland 2-2 Australia

International friendly, Fritz-Walter-Stadion - Germany 2 (Reus 17, Podolski 81) Australia 2 (Troisi 40, Jedinak 50)

Nothing could separate the world and Asian champions at the Fritz-Walter-Stadion as Germany and Australia played out a 2-2 friendly draw.

The Socceroos were playing their first game since coming out on top in the Asian Cup on home soil back in January and they will be further buoyed by their latest result.

It was Germany who opened the scoring through Marco Reus after he slotted home a Sami Khedira pass - and Joachim Loew’s men looked for a period like they might run away with the match.

Australia, however, weathered the storm and despite the home team dominating much of the play, they were soon level before the break through James Troisi, who headed home Matt McKay’s dangerous cross into the box.

A famous win looked like it might be on for the Socceroos as Mile Jedinak edged them in front with a free-kick after the restart, but substitute Lukas Podolski ensured Germany’s late pressure was not in vain as he converted Andre Schuerrle’s delivery from close range to level proceedings.

Bayern Munich to Beat Manchester United to £15m Italian Defender Matteo Darmian

​Bayern Munich plan to snatch Torino defender Matteo Darmian from under the noses of Manchester United, according to ​the Express.

Bayern are tracking the £15m right-back as a replacement for captain Philipp Lahm who, when fit, has spent much of the campaign playing in midfield.

United are also keen to strengthen in that area and have identified the Italy international alongside Southampton's Nathaniel Clyne and Tottenham's Kyle Walker.

The Red Devils could be forced to step up their interest in the England pair with Bayern reportedly ready to make their move for Darmian.

The 25-year-old has played 23 times in Serie A this season and has also impressed during the club's run to the Europa League's last 16.

GLADBACH INFLICT FIRST HOME DEFEAT OF SEASON ON BAYERN

Raffael beat Manuel Neuer twice

Matchday 26 ended with a surprising result in the Allianz Arena. Borussia Mönchengladbach beat record champions FC Bayern München 2-0 and strengthened their grip on a Champions League spot. Raffael’s brace (30’ & 77’) won the game for the visitors.

Bayern started strongly and created early chances through Robert Lewandowski (3’) and Arjen Robben (6’). The Bavarians saw plenty of possession early on but were unable to capitalise. Gladbach were dangerous on the counter but Bayern’s defence, marshalled by Holger Badstuber, stood firm. Raffael put Borussia in front shortly after the half hour mark. His powerful volley from Patrick Herrmann’s cross was dropped into his own net by Manuel Neuer.

Raffael completes his brace

David Alaba’s deflected effort before the break almost brought Bayern back into the game. After the interval the hosts continued to see plenty of the ball but were unable to convert any of their chances. Müller and Boateng had chances to equalise whilst at the other end André Hahn’s powerful effort was tipped onto the post by Neuer.

Juan Bernat had Bayern’s best chance with 15 minutes left on the clock but it was turned behind by Yann Sommer. Moments later the fohlenelf doubled their lead. Stunning play from Christoph Kramer was finished off emphatically by Raffael. The final chance of the game fell to the home side but Sommer kept Lewandowski and Müller at bay.

Roberto Di Matteo: It was a close game

Roberto Di Matteo:

It was a close game. We were a little better in the opening stages and had a good chance to go in front through Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. We made too many mistakes in our build-up play though and weren’t really able to control proceedings. We had a few goalscoring opportunities, but perhaps we were a little too nervous at times and didn’t make the right decisions. Leverkusen pressed well and made life difficult for us. We’re obviously very disappointed considering the result.

We should have got a penalty in the final few minutes. It was a clear handball from Roberto Hilbert from my point of view. You’ve seen things like the back-pass in the second half given before as well. Things didn’t go our way. 

We still have eight games and we have to pick up as many points as possible. As long as qualifying for the Champions League is possible, we will do all we can to make it happen. We still believe we can do it.

Roger Schmidt:

We’re very happy that we‘ve won this challenging game. The whole team can feel very proud of today’s result. A victory wasn’t a foregone conclusion because Schalke are very strong at home. Both sides had goal scoring opportunities; however, I think that over the 90 minutes, we deserved to win. The fact that the team are able to be so focused after the Champions League exit is fantastic. We’ve proven over the last few weeks that our team has developed and become much stronger. It’s no coincidence that we’re not conceding many goals at the moment. The team has worked hard to develop a solid defence. 

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING: GERMANY OFF TO WINNING START AGAINST SLOVAKIA

Germany take the initiative in the four team group

The Germany U17s have started the elite stage of qualifying for this summer’s European Championship in Bulgaria (6th-22nd May) with a win. Christian Wück’s side won their opening game 3-0 against Slovakia in Wetzlar. On Monday (11:00 CET) Germany will face Ukraine, before returning to Wetzlar on Thursday to place Italy (11:00 CET).

The team, captained by Borussia Dortmund’s Felix Passlack, put a lot of pressure on Slovakia in the first half, but couldn’t create any real chances. The floodgates opened in the second half when Johannes Eggestein scored in the 46th minute, before Passlack doubled the score from the penalty spot five minutes later. Eggestein sealed the comfortable 3-0 victory in the 72nd minute with his fifth goal in just his seventh game for the U17s.

First goal made things easier

"In the first half my team were still very nervous and made things difficult. After the first goal things became a lot easier for them. Our link up play improved drastically after that," said Germany manager Christian Wück, who also had praise for the fans. "The fans supported us brilliantly. We’re very happy with the win here against Italy."

In the qualifiers here in North Hessen, Germany can secure their passage to the finals as either one of eight group winners or seven group runners up.

Wückt has a good team at his disposal, with only four players having made less than five appearances for the U17s. "I have 18 players that have all established themselves as regulars. Because of that there were one or two who just fell short of the cut when I picked the squad. The quality of this age group made it very difficult for me to select my squad," explained Wück.